Solar module manufacturer Maxeon Solar Technologies has launched an n-type tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) module for distributed generation projects.
The 440-455W SunPower Performance 7 bifacial module boasts an efficiency of up to 22.4%. With a glass-glass design, the modules can withstand extreme weather events such as hail, wind, snow and fluctuating temperatures.
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The module, measuring 1,790 millimetres by 1,134 millimetres, boasts a maximum annual degradation rate of 0.4%, with the first year minimum warranted output of 99%. Maxeon added that the modules feature the latest generation of its patented TOPCon cell technology in a shingled-cell design, offering more effective shade management, mitigation of hotspots and cooler cell temperatures than standard modules.
The modules are available for purchase by residential and commercial customers in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the APAC markets.
Additionally, the module has been certified for its sustainability by the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute.
Aside from the latest module, Maxeon also announced its preliminary financial results for the fourth quarter of 2023 this week. In Q4, the company shipped 653MW of module capacity, a year-on-year decrease from the 734MW registered in Q4 2022. However, shipments for the full year of 2023 were up by more than 500MW, with 2.9GW shipped in 2023 versus 2.4GW in 2022.
In its preliminary unaudited financial statements, Maxeon registered a revenue of US$229 million in Q4 2023, down from the US$324 million registered in the same period the previous year. The company ended the last quarter of 2023 with a gross loss of US$32 million yet ended 2023 with a gross profit of US$80 million.
Bill Mulligan, CEO of Maxeon, said the company is now highly focused on reducing manufacturing costs, operational expenditure (OPEX) rationalisation, and liquidity management to enable a return to profitability.
Maxeon began as the manufacturing arm of SunPower but was spun off as a separate entity in 2020, although it still operates the SunPower brand in global markets outside the US, Canada and Japan where it trades as Maxeon.